Follow the Drinking GourdFollow the Drinking Gourd

"When the sun comes back, And the first quail calls, Follow the drinking gourd. For the old man is a-waiting For to carry you to freedom If you follow the drinking gourd. It sounded like a simple folk song sung by slaves. But it was actually a map to freedom, for hidden in its lyrics were directions for a trail known as the Underground Railroad. In remarkable pictures that spring directly from American folk tradition and a text that weaves history and song together, Jeanette Winter tells the moving story of Peg Leg Joe and a brave group of runaway slaves who followed the Drinking Gourd, the Big Dipper, north to freedom." --